Mucking machine and conveyer system



` Nov; 29, -1938 w. A. WHITMIRE M8200`r MUCKING MACHINE AND CONVEYER SYSTEM Filed Aug. 4, 1937 Patented Nov. 29, 1938" Y MUCKING MACHINE AND ooNvEYER SYSTEM William A. Whitmire', Boca, Calif.

Application VAugust 4,

2 Claims.

This invention, a mucking machine and con veyer system has as its principal feature, a conveyer which is radially adjustable in a horizontaly plane relative to the mucking machine carriage' and the mucking unit, to permit shifting the discharge from cars on one track to cars on another track parallel thereto, as also, in open cuts and excavations, to discharge muck to the sides of the cut or excavation, thus avoiding the time necessary to remove one string oi cars and place another string on the same track.

With this arrangement of conveyer, cars may be placed on the same track on which the mucking machine is operating, and other strings of cars may be placed on other tracksgparallel thereto, and the conveyer, after loading a liirst string oi cars can be shifted radially to load a second string on another track while the first string is hauled away to dump, thus increasing the speed of mucking, cost of operation, and generalefciency.

This invention is an improvement over my Patent No. 2,086,687, isued July 13, 1937, and includes features which are disclosed in my Patent No. 2,067,879, issued January 12, 1937, as also in my copending applications, Serial No. 157,330` filed August 4, 1937, for Mucking machine d ipper, andSerialvNo.` 157,331, ledAugust 4, 1937, for Mucking machine dipperhoisting system, but can also be incorporatediin other types of ,murcking and excavating machines. Y

The objects and advantages of the invention are as follows:

First: to provide a mucking machine or eX-,`

cavating machine with al conveyer system which is pivoted at its tail end, and in which: thehead end of the conveyer may be radially adjusted for discharging at will and selectively into cars located on a plurality of parallel tracks, whereby the mucking or excavating operations -may be carried on without interruption.'

Second: Vto provide a conveyer system as outlined which is radially adjustable independently of theoperation or angular adjustment `of the mucking unit and relative to the support or carriage.

Third: to provide power means for adjusting said conveyer system radially through a predetermined angle in either direction relative to the longitudinal axis of the mucking machine carnage.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the following description is read on the drawing forming a part of this speciiication, and in which similar reference characters are used to designate similar parts throughout the several views, of which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section through the swivel connections of the mucking unit and conveyer unit to 1937, Serial No. 157,332

the support or carriage and corresponds to a section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

The mucking machine consists oi a carriage or4 truck which includes the side members Ii! which are supported on the track wheels II and I2 which operate on the rails i3 and lli; and also includes, the arcuate rail I5 which is supported by the side members I and which forms the support for the front end of the mucking unit, the pivot bracket I6 which supports the tail end of the conveyer directly on the carriage,V and shown as supported by the side members E3, andA the structure I 'I which carries and supports the arcuate track I8 which supports the conveyer intermediate its length and is itself supported by thecarriage, as on the sidemembers It.

The mucking unit frame consists of thesupport or side members I9 and 20 and the superstructure 2| which carries the hoisting sheaves and main receiving hopper.

The mucking unit includes the crowds 22 and 23, (though a single crowd may be used if desiredlwhich are slidable in or between therside members I9 and 20 anddriven by the pinions 24 and 25y which cooperate with rack teeth' formed in the top vsurfaces of the crowds or attached thereto in the form of a rack, these pinions being .secured on a shaft'2, Vand which shaft has af suitable speed. Othertypes of power means for operation may in certain cases be desirable, however, motors are shown for purposes of simplicity. Compressed air engines are usually desirable for tunnel work.

Aixed to the front end of the crowd or crowds is a dipper-Stick head 30 to the respective upper and lower ends of which are pivotally secured the respective dipper sticks 3l and 32 which have pivotally attached to their other ends the wrist connection 33 which connects the dipper sticks to the dipper 34.

This clipper 34 has a bail 35 which is pivoted to the sides of the dipper at 36, and a backstop 3l is aiixed to the sides of the dipper and cooperates withA the bail in lowered and partly lowered positions of the dipper, and prevents the bail from swinging back beyond a plane inclined forwardly from its pivotal connections.

A s heave 38 is associated with each side of bail, as through the medium of links 39, and forms a part of the crowd movement compensating means for the hoisting system.

The clipper is shown in its dumping position, with the cover 40 released and the dipper dumping muck 4I into the main receiving hopper 42 which is supported by the superstructure 2I.

IiXed thereon adjacent each end, a crowd payout vveyer frame or truss.

A pair of sheaves, 43, 44 is mounted on each end of a shaft 45 for independent rotation, the shaft 45 being supported on the superstructure 2l, and a cable 4S is provided for each side of the bail, each cable having one end secured and windable on a compensating drum 2, thence passing over the sheave 43, thence about sheave 38, thence Y over sheave 44 and down to the hoisting drum 41 to which its other end is attached and windable thereon.

For purposes of simplicity in illustration, the hoisting drums 47 are shown as driven by a motor 48 through a chain or belt 49, the motor and hoisting drums being supported on the mucking unit frame.

The mucking unit has its front end supported on rollers 50 which operate on the arcuate track l5, and has its other support on a bearing seat 5l which is supported by the side members IB and swivelly secured to the seat 5l by means of a king pin or pivot 52 which is suitably secured in the cross member 53 which is supported by the side members I9 andv 2!) of the mucking unit frame, the mucking unit swiveling about the axis of the pivot to permit the clipper 34 to operate over a comparatively wide sweep.

The mucking unit is provided with power means for swinging the unit about its pivot in either direction through a predetermined angle, and is shown in its simplest form as consisting of a chain or cable 54 which operates around sprockets or sheaves 55 and 56 which are suitably supported by the carriage or truck, with the ends of the Ychain or cable respectively secured to the kside members i9 and 2B, one of the sheaves being description.

The lower end of the main receiving hopper 42 is preferably conical in form and feeds into the conical lower hopper 60 which is providedwith aprons 6i to feed the material onto the conveyer, this lower hopper being supported on the con- With conical hoppers, the conveyer may be swung about its pivotal connection and will suitably receive material from the main hopper in any adjusted position. Cylindrical hoppers may also be used, as also, the hopper 6U alone.

The conveyer system consists -of a suitable truss frame 62 which supports the head pulley 63 at the discharge end and is supported at the receiving end on the bearings 64 which support the tail pulley 55, and the truss is intermediately supported by the rollers 66 riding on the arcuate rail I8. The conveyer belt 61 extends about the head and tail pulleys and over suitable idlers 68 -and 69 as may be required for suitable support same axis and each can readily be adjusted radially independently of the other.

Power adjusting means is provided for the conveyer unit and is shown in simple form as consisting of an arrangement similar to that described for adjusting the mucking unit, and consists olf a chain or cable 'll attached to the conveyer frame or truss as by a depending arm 12, the cable passing about sheaves 13 and 14, one of' which is driven as by a motor 'l5 through a belt 1S and bevel gearing Tl and 18, reversal of the motor providing for adjustment in opposite directions.

As illustrated in Fig. 1, the conveyer is in position to discharge muck in cars located on the same track on which the mucking machine is located, and may radially be adjusted to any position within the limits defined by the arcuate track I8, as indicated by dotted lines 'I9 in an intermediate position of adjustment for loading cars and 8l on the parallel track to one side of the main track, the cars being shifted as loading progresses. When car 80 is loaded, the conveyer can immediately be swung over to start loading car 82 and then 83 on the other side, while cars 80 and 8l are taken away to dump. Other tracks can be laid parallel if desired, and the limit of angular or side discharge is dependent only on the length of the conveyer and angular length of the arcuate track I8, and the conveyer can be adjusted to any desired angular relation `to the truck or carriage irrespective of the angular adjustment of the mucking unit.

It will be understood that variations in construction and arrangement of parts, which variations are consistent with the appended claims, may be resorted to without detracting from the spirit or scope of the invention, or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof.

I claim:

1. In a mucking machine having a carriage lncluding side members, a mucking'unit having frame support members and pivotally mounted on -said carriage in superposed relation to said side members for angular adjustment in a horizontal plane, and a crowd operating between said support members, and a conveyer; means for unobstructively mounting said conveyer comprising, a pivot bracket extending over and about said side members and said support members and having its opposite ends secured to the outside of the respective side members and having a central pivot bearing; a tail-pulley bearing bracket having a central vertical pivot supported in said pivot bearing, providing an obstructionless mounting for the tail end of said conveyer as related to angular movements of the mucking unit and -advance and retractive movements of said crowd.

2. A structure as claimed in claim l; an intermediate support for said conveyer comprising standards mounted adjacent the rear ends of said WILLIAM A. WHITNIIRE. 

